The syncopation of the -e in the adverbial -es is indicated, as is well known, by the spelling, in certain cases: e.g. in else, hence, thence, whence (instead of the Middle English forms elles, hennes, &c.); but even in words where it is preserved in writing, as e.g. in whiles, unawares, it has become mute and has, as a rule, no metrical value in Modern English poetry. The archaic certes, however, is still always treated as a disyllabic, e.g.
I wáil, I wáil, and certës that is trúe.
Mrs. Browning, i, p. 55.
§ 98. The ending -en (plur. nom. of nouns; prepositions; infinitive; strong past part.; plur. pres. and pret. of verbs) is in Middle English (a) commonly treated as a full syllable during the first period, and later on mostly, although not always, to avoid hiatus, before vowels and h, e.g. His éyen stépe Chauc. Prol. 201; Bifórenn Críst allmáhhtig Gódd Orm. 175; Befóren ánd behýnde Alexius, ii. 393; abóven álle nációuns Chauc. Prol. 53; þú schalt béren hím þis ríng Floris and Blanch. 547; Fór to délen with no swích poráille Chauc. Prol. 247; bifrórenn Orm. 13856; forlórenn ib. 1395; Sche wás arísen ánd al rédy díght Chauc. Kn. T. 183; Hir hósen wéren óf fyn scárlet reed id. Prol. 456; For thís ye knówen álso wél as I ib. 730; Swa þátt teȝȝ shúlenn wúrrþen þǽr Orm. 11867; þatt háffdenn cwémmd himm í þiss líf ib. 210; Ál þet wé misdíden hére Moral Ode, 99; (b) syncopated or slurred, especially in later times, after the n has been dropped already in prepositions and verbal inflexions, e.g. His póre féren he delde Alexius, ii. 210; Hálles and bóures, óxen and plóugh ib. 12; Bifórr þe Rómanísshe kíng (instead of biforenn) Orm. 6902; Hastów had fléen al nýght Chauc. Manc. Prol. 17; She bóthe hir yónge chíldren untó hir cálleþ id. Cl. T. 1081; is bórn: þat wenten hím bifórn id. Man of Lawes T. 995–7; withínne a lítel whýle id. Sq. T. 590; And únderfóngen his kínedóm Flor. and Blanch. 1264; þei máde sówen in þát cité Alexius, i. 577; Bíddeþ his mén cómen him nére ib. 134; Hórn: i-bórn King Horn, 137–8; forlóren: Hórn ib. 479–80; Was rísen and rómede Chauc. Kn. T. 207; my líef is fáren on lónde id. N. Pr. T. 59; And fórth we ríden a lítel móre than páas id. Prol. 825; þei drýven him ófte tó skornínge Alexius, i. 308; þei rísen alle úp with blíþe chére ib. 367; þei cásten upón his cróun ib. 312; And wíssheden þat hé were déd Alexius, ii. 335, &c.
In Modern English this ending is much more rare, and is hardly ever used as a full syllable of the verse. The plural ending -en of the substantive occurs now and then in Wyatt’s and Surrey’s verse, as e.g. in éyen instead of éyes, both in rhyme, e.g. éyen: míne Sur. 14, and in the interior of the line, ib. 126, 128; Wyatt 8, 17, &c.
Prepositions ending in -en are scarcely ever used now; sometimes the archaic withóuten is to be met with in some Early Modern English poets, and then, of course, as a trisyllable: withóuten dréad Sur. 95; withóuten énd Spenser, F. Q. II. ix. 58. The obsolete infinitives in -en may also be found sometimes in the writings of the same and other early Modern English poets: in váyn: sáyen Sur. 31; his flócke to víewën wíde Spenser, F. Q. I. i. 23; to kíllën bád Shak. Pericles, II. Prol. 20. Likewise certain antiquated plural forms of the verb in -en: dischárgën cléan Sur. 30; fen: lífedën Spenser, F. Q. II. x. 7; and wáxën ín their mírth Shak. M. N. Dr. II. i. 56.
It is only the -en of the past participle that is at all often after certain consonants treated as a full syllable, e.g. the frózen héart Sur. 1; gótten out ib. 10; the strícken déer ib. 54; hast táken páin Wyatt, 99. Here the full forms are preserved in the ordinary language. It is only exceptionally that participles that have undergone shortening, as come, reassume their n and regain an extra syllable, e.g. tíll he cómën háth West (Poets, ix. 484). Contracted forms like grown, known, drawn, always remain monosyllabic, even in verse, and words like fallen, swollen, which are normally disyllabic, are often contracted in poetry: as grown Sur. 13; known ib. 45; swoln ib. 8; befallen ib. 26; drawn Wyatt, 160. Complete contraction is effected either by elision of the final consonant of the stem, e.g. ta’en (instead of taken) Sur. 44, or by slurring of the ending, e.g. hath gíven a pláce Sur. 108; is béaten with wínd and stórm ib. 157, &c.
§ 99. The comparative and superlative endings -er, -est are, as a rule, syllabic. Hórn is fáirer þáne beo hé King Horn, 330; No lénger dwélle hý ne mýghte Alexius, ii. 85; But ráther wólde he yéven Chauc. Prol. 487.
These endings are treated, moreover, as full syllables in the unaccented rhymes Hǽngest: fǽirest Layamon, 13889–90; Hǽngest: héndest ib. 13934–5. If an inflexional -e is added to such words, so as to make them trisyllables, it is commonly elided or apocopated, e.g. Fór he ís the fáireste mán Horn, 787; hire grétteste óoth Chauc. Prol. 120; The férreste in his párisshe ib. 494. Slurring or syncopation takes place in the following examples, Sche móst wiþ hím no lénger abíde Sir Orfeo, line 328; No lénger to héle óf he bráke Alexius, ii. 127; more rarely in the superlative, Annd állre láttst he wúndedd wáss Orm. 11779, 11797; Was thóu not fárist of ángels álle? Towneley Myst. p. 4.
In Modern English these endings are treated similarly. The comparative-ending -er is mostly syllabic on account of the phonetic nature of the final r, and even if slurred, it does not entirely lose its syllabic character, e.g.: